‘Jimmy Coates: Killer’ by Joe Craig Review

Jimmy Coates is a regular 11-year old boy who is suddenly forced to realize that life with his family in the ‘neo Democratic State of Great Britain’ must come to an abrupt end. Jimmy himself has also changed: he develops sensations that start at the pit of his stomach forcing him to think and do things out of his control; He can sense things more acutely, his reflexes are magnified, he can run and swim faster than he ever could before, he is stronger, able to execute perfect martial arts moves he never even knew he possessed and he can even fly a helicopter. The bad news though is that he is now on the run from people who he believes are out to harm him, his parents have been kidnapped, he’s not sure where his sister is and every time he asks for anyone’s help, he puts their life in danger too. And worst of all? He can’t trust anyone.

 

This is a fantastic, fast-paced book that is gripping from its first pages when things quickly begin to kick off as soon as a group of suited men arrive at Jimmy’s house one evening demanding to see him. His mum shouts ‘run Jimmy’ and that is exactly what he does, but not before he sees his parents placed into a black van with a green stripe and driven away. Everything about Jimmy’s old life is officially over. Along the way Jimmy meets an interesting character called Mitchell and gets a private audience with Ares Hollande, the British Prime Minister. In a horrific twist of events Jimmy is ordered to assassinate a certain Christopher Viggo if he is to save his family.

 

Thankfully, Jimmy is not alone. With the help of a few loyal and very brave friends like FelixMuzbeke (who is a smart and very funny character), Eva and others he meets along the way, Jimmy not only gets the help he needs but also manages to uncover a whole web of intricate lies, intrigue, suspense, and spies to boot. Ultimately Jimmy has to deal with the biggest revelation of all: who he really is and how that will affect not only the outcome of the mission he has been tasked with but with making sure his family and friends remain safe in the process.

 

‘Jimmy Coates: Killer’ is an adventurous, thought-provoking thriller that is also about friendship, family, loyalty, humanity and the decision to do the right thing when all that is expected of you is to do otherwise. It was written in 2005 by British writer Joe Craig and is the first book in the Jimmy Coates’ series. In the US it is published under the title ‘Jimmy Coates: Assassin’. It was a finalist for the 2006 Manchester Book Award, and won the Bolton Children's Book Award 2006.

The Book Challenge!

Mintaad is always keen that you meet your reading targets and want to make sure that you are still well and truly on track with the reading challenges some of you set for themselves at the beginning of the year.

 

To help you do that we have created a checklist that will see you on your way and help make the challenge more focused and fun. Download the list or print it out and keep it somewhere close so you can check it as you go along, or you can even make your own!

 

 

 

 

How to Write a Book Review!

A review is really just a fancy term we use to describe the act of telling people whether we like something or not. Writing a review can seem scary or hard at first but the more your practice, the better you become and soon you’ll realize that it can be real fun too.

Reviews can be as simple or as elaborate, as short or as long as you like, but the main thing to keep in mind is that any review should be clear, accurate, with emphasis on constructive criticism. Refrain from using bad language or insulting terms and remember that any work you choose to discuss is the product of someone’s long hours and hard work.

Here are a few tips to set you on your way:

 Make sure you’ve got your elements in place

In your review make sure to mention the name of the author, the title of the book and the main characters. Make sure everything is spelled correctly as well.

 Don’t spoil the book by giving away too much of the story

Write down a brief summary of what the book is about and maybe mention one or two characters that you particularly enjoyed. But, whatever you do, NEVER EVER give away the plot or key events in the story. Remember, you’re enticing people to read the book for themselves and make up their own minds. They certainly want to enjoy finding things out for themselves just like you did.

Strike a balance

When you’re reviewing a book, always make sure to mention the strengths as well as the weaknesses. Reviews are not just about pointing out what you didn’t like but also what you thought worked too.

Be nice

Following on from the point above, it is understandable that you won’t enjoy every book you read. However, always keep in mind that this book is the product of its author’s long hours and hard work. So when you want to be critical, do so in a polite, clean, constructive and professional manner.

Take notes

When you’re reading, make sure to take down notes and write down quotes that you feel you’d might like to use in your review. Looking back at your notes will help to keep the story structure and key elements in the correct order and you’ll remember who’s who in the story. If you’re using quotes, make sure you do so accurately and relevantly keeping them in context. Taking notes will also offer concrete examples that will back up the points that you are making whether for or against the book.

Start easy

If you’re new at writing a book review, start with a book that you really like because then it’s easier telling others about it and you’ll be pretty confident writing about it too.If you're stuck on what to say in a review, it can help to imagine you're talking to someone (like a friend or sister or brother) who's asking you whether they should read the book.

Check for spelling

There is nothing worse than a review with spelling mistakes. Readers might forgive one or two mistakes but more than that and you can be sure that people will stop reading what you’ve written regardless of all the effort you put into your work.

Here are questions to help you while reviewing a book. Try to answer them as accurately as you can without giving too much away. Keep the suspense.

1.      Does the book have a genre? (Romance, thriller, action…)

2.      What is the story about? Did you like it?

3.      Who are the main characters and how believable did you find them?

4.      How believable was the story and did you feel that the author’s style grabbed your attention and made you want to go on or did you feel it was slow and a chore?

5.      Did you like the book?

6.      What was your favorite part of the book and why?

7.      What sort of people do you think would like this book?

8.      Would you recommend the book to someone else?

The Perfect Recipe for Beating the Winter Blues

 

The winter blues can get the best of us down. However, at Mintaad.com we’ve come up with the perfect recipe: a warm blanket, a cup of cocoa (see recipe below) and of course a book selected from Mintaad’s varied library. And presto, those winter blues will dissipate into a thing of the past. Enjoy!

 

Ingredients

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
Dash salt
1/3 cup hot water
4 cups (1 qt.) milk
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Miniature marshmallows or sweetened whipped cream (optional)

 Directions

1. Stir together sugar, cocoa and salt in medium saucepan; stir in water. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Boil and stir 2 minutes. Add milk; stirring constantly, heat to serving temperature. Do Not Boil.

2. Remove from heat; add vanilla. Beat with rotary beater or whisk until foamy. Serve topped with marshmallows or whipped cream, if desired.

3. Makes five 8-oz. servings

 

VARIATIONS: Add one of the following with the vanilla extract:

SPICED COCOA: 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon and 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg. Serve with cinnamon stick, if desired.

SWISS MOCHA: 2 to 2-1/2 teaspoons powdered instant coffee.

 COCOA AU LAIT: Omit marshmallows or whipped cream. Spoon 2 tablespoons softened vanilla ice cream on top of each cup of cocoa at serving time.

 SLIM-TRIM COCOA: Omit sugar. Combine cocoa, salt and water; substitute nonfat milk. Proceed as above. With vanilla, stir in sugar substitute with sweetening equivalence of 1/2 cup sugar.

 CANADIAN COCOA: 1/2 teaspoon maple extract.

 MICROWAVE SINGLE SERVING: Combine 1 heaping teaspoon HERSHEY'S Cocoa, 2 heaping teaspoons sugar and dash salt in microwave-safe cup or mug. Add 2 teaspoons cold milk; stir until smooth. Fill cup with milk. Microwave at HIGH (100%) 1 to 1-1/2 minutes or until hot. Stir to blend; serve.

 Source: Hershey.com

 

Q & A with Award Winning Author Joe Craig!

Check out our interesting Q&A with Joe Craig ahead of his visit to Jordan for his much anticipated workshops for young and aspiring writers. We’ve asked him to tell us a bit about what to expect from the workshops and how he is going to make them fun. He’s even let us know something that not many people know about him. Want to find out what that is? Read on…

Why do you think writing workshops are a good idea for young writers to attend and who would you encourage to sign up?

We understand the world through stories. So getting to know how a story works means you can see the world in new ways. But thinking creatively and coming up with ideas aren’t always straightforward processes – let alone writing those ideas down. So it’s a huge help to learn some simple techniques from someone whose whole existence, every day, is coming up with ideas and writing them down – a writer! There are some basics to story writing and creative thinking that everyone should learn when they’re young, but most people don’t find them out until much, much later – and some people don’t discover them at all. So get ahead. Open up new ways of seeing and thinking about the world.

 

What would you say to someone slightly hesitant about joining your writing workshop because they are shy they might have to share their work with others?

Sharing your work with others is tough – especially when some teacher is going to give it a grade or make a judgement about you because of your work. I’m not going to do any of that. That’s not what I’m here for. I have no interest in giving grades or judging who’s better than who or whether your writing is “good enough”. Writing should be all about the thrill of coming up with ideas: The buzz of creating something out of nothing. Learning how to grip an audience in ways you never thought you could. Nobody needs to share something they’ve written if they don’t want to. Whether you do or not, you’ll get the fun of feeling your imagination stretched and your writing boosted.

 

What can young audiences expect in the sessions and will it be fun?

Definitely fun! You’ll never see stories in the same way again; Movies, books, plays, everything. It’ll be like a guided tour to see behind the scenes in a creator’s mind and you’ll get that magical feeling of your own mind exploring entirely new directions. So yes, it will be fun. Hopefully you’ll laugh a lot. I’m not a teacher and I get bored easily so I’ll make sure you keep me entertained. The thing about writing and coming up with story ideas is, sometimes, the more ridiculous you get, the more original and daring and exciting the result will be.

 

Will you share with us something about yourself that not many people know about you?

I make my own mozzarella cheese. It’s delicious. I don’t use my own milk, though. That would be weird. I get it from a cow. Or, actually, from a shop that’s already got it from a cow for me.

 

What is the first thing you are planning to visit in Jordan when you get the time?

My friends! I have old friends who moved to Jordan years and years ago and I’m so excited to see them. I haven’t seen them in ages.

 

What book are you reading right now?

I’m usually reading several things at once. (I always try to keep my Goodreads account up to date so people can see what I’m reading and how I rated it when I finished.) At the moment I’m reading:

-‘Black Horizon’ by MG Harris (first in the new Gemini Force series)

-‘Love in Infant Monkeys’ by Lydia Millet

-‘Real Time II’ by DH Mellor

-‘Time and Space’ by Barry Dainton

What 2 books had you read by the age of 16?

‘Titus Groan’ by MervynPeake& ‘New York’ Trilogy by Paul Auster
 
 
For more information on the upcoming workshops visit our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/events/1574997502742699
 
or drop us an email on info@mintaad.com